The combined weight of two Southern belles, the Slaton sisters, had led the TLC Channel to chronicle the lives of Amy and Tammy during their weight loss journey in the reality television series “1000-lb Sisters.” They have built an enormous fan base since it premiered on 1 January 2020, becoming one of the most-watched series on the cable network as two morbidly obese women go through obstacles including a family drama, and failed romantic relationships to achieve their dreams of living normal lives, which they apparently somehow did.
Get to Know Amy and Tammy Slaton before “1000-lbs Sisters”
Way before any cable TV network got wind of the plight of the Slaton sisters from Dixon, Kentucky, they were already vlogging through the popular video-sharing platform, YouTube. Due to their poor health condition, they couldn’t earn money the way most regular people do, so they relied on the payment scheme YouTube used for its content providers.
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The two were practically raised by their grandmother, because most of the time, their mother, Darlene, was working many jobs just to provide food and pay the bills for the family. Due to the lack of funds, proper nutrition was not a priority, and due to lack of attention, the Slaton sisters overcompensated on food. They grew up being bullied not only by other kids, but also by family members including their mother who didn’t have a great relationship with them. While they shared a common problem of being overweight all their lives, they didn’t necessarily share the same situation.
Amy Slaton – Halterman (original weight: 405lbs)
Of the two sisters, Amy is the younger one, weighing around 405lbs – about 185kgs – when the series started. She married her longtime boyfriend, Michael Halterman, a mill operator who was her schoolmate at the Union High School from where she matriculated.
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Amy was declared legally blind by her doctors, as she was born with an eye defect. The functionality of her eyes decreases as the years go by, and the doctors said that by the age of 35, she would totally lose her eyesight. Due to this condition, she was receiving monthly disability benefits, which helped her and her husband make ends meet, as her sister, Tammy, was already living with them. The two sisters made vows when they were still kids that they would take care of each other when they grew up.
When she opened her YouTube account in 2011, and started uploading videos out of sheer boredom, she never had any inkling that it would be the catalyst in changing her life. Her first video was a 30-second make-up tutorial she did with Tammy, followed by other make-up makeovers, showing her collections, and food and movie reviews. These videos were attracting a mediocre number of views, and it wasn’t until she made the “Chubby Bunny Challenge” video with Tammy that she hit the jackpot.
The Slaton sisters filled their mouths with several marshmallows, and whoever could utter the words, ‘Chubby Bunny,’ would win the challenge. The video went viral in 2014, amassing over a million views. While other viewers found it disgustingly dangerous, there were many who found it so funny that over the years the number of views more than doubled. Thanks to the video, the cable network, TLC, took notice, and offered them a chance to be the stars of the reality-TV show, “1000-lbs Sisters.”
Tammy Slaton (original weight: over 600lbs)
There were several factors why Tammy’s weight bloated to 500lbs, about 225kgs, by the time she was 20 years old, including a massive intake of unhealthy food, but also due to emotional stress, no proper exercise, laziness, and lack of proper attention. After her grandmother died when she was nine years old, she turned to food for comfort, and before she realized that it was quite harmful, she was already morbidly obese.
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She never checked her real weight over the years, and with Amy as her constant companion who was also overweight, nobody really cared enough to give them proper guidance.
When TLC offered her and Amy the “1000-lbs Sisters,” she weighed over 600lbs, about 275kgs. She already had a problem walking by herself, so was aided by a walker, and would be tired after walking just a few feet/meters. Tammy was assisted by Amy in doing personal tasks including taking a shower or a bath. She couldn’t go out of the house, or anywhere for that matter unless someone drove her. She took up most of the space in the back of the car with the seats folded up, so she could sit down on the car floor when she needed to go somewhere. Tammy relied heavily on Amy and Michael every single day of her life.
Their Journey with TLC’s “1000-lb Sisters”
The reality-TV show, “The 1000-lb Sisters,” started documenting the lives of Amy and Tammy Slaton sometime in 2019, and the first season aired a year after that. It tackled many aspects of their lives associated with their morbid obesity. Tammy had been on life support a couple of times due to several health issues brought on by her weight, including a blood clot found in her lungs, and an unhealthy gallbladder. While Amy’s condition was not as bad as Tammy’s, she knew that she couldn’t continue with her risky lifestyle, if she wanted to achieve her lifelong dream of having a baby.
Season 1
When they consulted with the weight loss journey expert and bariatric surgeon, Dr. Charles Proctor, he immediately told them that they needed surgery as soon as possible, but they had to qualify for it first. The doctor required them to lose some weight to make the operation less risky, and to gauge if they were serious in their intention.
The Slaton sisters went on a diet and did daily exercises. This phase proved to be one of the most difficult times in their lives – the two became grumpy and would fight over the most trivial things each day. It tested their relationship, and they almost gave up on each other.
The first season ended with only Amy qualifying for bariatric surgery. Since Tammy didn’t lose the required weight, Dr. Proctor dropped her as his patient. He advised them to look for another medical consultant, because it was quite impractical for them to travel from Kentucky to Atlanta, Georgia for consultations, but suggested that a doctor near their place could easily monitor Tammy’s condition.
Season 2
Tammy was frustrated that she fell off the wagon, and lashed out at Amy because of it. She was happy about what was happening with Amy, but was quite jealous too.
Instead of losing the extra pounds, she gained more during the pandemic caused by the Covid-19 virus, saying that travel restrictions meant that she had no access to healthy options, and so went back to eating what was easily available.
The setback didn’t make her give up on her goals, and she vowed to qualify for surgery on the next weigh-in. Since Amy couldn’t take care of Tammy because of her pregnancy, their brother Chris Combs volunteered to help and monitor Tammy. The problem was that she acquired a new boyfriend named Jerry, and Amy felt that he was just using her sister. He was married and Tammy was aware of it, but didn’t care. It was proven that he was detrimental to Tammy since Jerry liked big girls and wouldn’t support her in losing weight. On her last weigh-in for the season, she was over 20lbs or 10kgs heavier, now up to 665lbs, over 300kgs.
"I wasn't ready for a baby and a 35-year-old baby." Tune in to the season premiere of #1000lbSisters Monday, November 15 at 10/9c! pic.twitter.com/AbOShj8T0O
— TLC Network (@TLC) November 1, 2021
The doctor advised that she go to an assisted living facility to treat her problem; apparently, she ate the 30-day pre-planned meals in just two days. To further complicate matters, in the last episode, viewers were shocked that she was rushed to hospital because she’d contracted the Covid-19 virus.
Amy, on the other hand, had a successful surgery, but she veered off from her post-op diet by eating solid food, and was warned by Dr. Proctor it could affect the suture line since her wounds hadn’t healed yet. She then followed the doctor’s advice to avoid any more health risks, and even had a celebration with friends and family in attendance weeks later to show her new body. At that time, her weight was down to 281lbs and they were all happy for her. She was on her way to pursue her dream of becoming pregnant, but Dr. Proctor told her to wait for two more years so her body could handle all the changes.
However, Amy and Michael weren’t careful, and she became pregnant four months after her surgery. While they were quite happy about it, they were also afraid because it was a risky pregnancy. At the end of season two, she delivered a healthy baby boy they named Gage Deon Halterman. She could have had a normal delivery because the baby was small, but due to the baby’s breech position, she underwent a caesarian operation.
Facts and Rumors Surrounding the Slaton Sisters of “1000-lb Sisters”
After two seasons, the TV show, “1000-lb Sisters,” had become one of the most-viewed series on cable television. The success, however, came with a price, as rumor upon rumors spread online not only about the show but also about Amy and Tammy. Here are just some of them:
Tammy lied about her missing teeth
Lying about the origins of why one didn’t have perfect teeth may seem trivial to some people, but when one is a reality-TV star just like Tammy Slaton, fans could get quite picky about it.
They accused her of changing her stories whenever it suited her. In a past interview in her show, she told everyone that she lost her front teeth when she was still young. She went to consult with a dentist about it, but fixing them wasn’t a priority. However, there were teenage pictures of her with all her teeth that were shared online. To make matters worse, there was an episode on the show in which she visited a dentist for the first time after a long while, and viewers found out that she only brushed her teeth a couple of times a week.
Tammy was abusive towards a nurse
During the off-season, there were rumors that Tammy was abusive towards a nurse in the care facility that she was staying in. She admitted to her doctor that she needed more help because of her food addiction. Fans believed that Tammy with her fiery personality couldn’t take the restrictions the care facility imposed on their patients, and lashed out at the nurse caring for her just as she would normally do to her sister when things didn’t go her way.
Amy collected money via GoFundMe for Tammy’s coffin
When they were still financially struggling, and before the TV show “1000lb Sisters,” happened, Amy once begged the fans to send her money to pay for Tammy’s funeral, saying that she needed money to buy a huge coffin for her; at that time, they’d already gained fans via their YouTube channel. She uploaded a video telling their fans that Tammy was having a hard time breathing in hospital and was already on life support. She also said that she set up a GoFundMe account to which fans could send money to help her pay the bills. It wasn’t an unusual or unreasonable request, but then the videos that she uploaded later on showed a laughing Tammy; she was clearly not dead, and those who sent money felt scammed. When the fans became angry, she said that she would reimburse the money that they’d received. However, fans claimed that they never received anything from her.
Tammy scammed artists for some “1000-lb Sisters” merchandise
When their show became popular, Tammy thought of earning additional money through selling merchandise.
She partnered with a man named Quincy to promoted merchandise bearing designs from other online artists, however, fans noticed that the button they had on their shop was a donate button and not a shop button. Quincy explained that they had to use it since their shop wasn’t verified for selling.
However, another controversy arose, because apparently, they were using designs that weren’t authorized by the artists, and Tammy never paid them. Quincy clarified that the artists didn’t ask to be paid, but simply wanted a ‘follow’ from Tammy on their social media accounts. This was denied by artists such as Ponychops, but Quincy was defiant and told the artist to shut up, accusing her of being a clout chaser. It didn’t take long before the shop was shut down, and later fans learned that the business partners were no longer on good terms. Quincy went live on Instagram threatening to expose many things, but Tammy joined the live session and told him to quit being a child so they could talk privately. They did iron out things, but could still be sued for what they did.
Tammy found another boyfriend
For someone who had so many health issues most of her life, Tammy had no difficulty finding a man. However, these men had a common fetish, which was big women. Tammy needed someone who would support her weight-loss journey, and this new guy preferred his women over 300lbs and wore a size 24 and above. He called himself BBWKing and Amy didn’t think he was good for her. Tammy shared photos of them kissing and holding hands on her Instagram account.
Tammy banned from TikTok
Sometime in 2021, Tammy was banned from the social-sharing site TikTok, allegedly due to uploading explicit videos. It wasn’t the first time she had a problem with the social app site, as she’d deleted her account earlier even after gaining more than a million followers. It was due to the merchandise controversy, and fans said it was done so as not to incur legal troubles with the artists that she and her business partner, Quincy, allegedly scammed.
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What are the Slaton Sisters doing now?
The TLC network announced in Mach 2021 that there would be a third season of the reality show, “1000-lb Sisters,” as many loyal fans signed a petition on Change.org for the cable network to give them another season, so they can be updated on what’s going on with the Slaton sisters; it was reported that they collected more than 4,000 signatures. Just a week before the announcement, Amy couldn’t confirm or deny that there would be another season, as her contract prohibited her from saying anything about it.
The TLC TV producers confirmed that the Slaton sisters would grace the small screen once again, as they announced in September 2021 that Season 3 will start airing on 15 November 2021. Chris Combs would again be part of the regular cast, and would continue to feature his weight-loss journey most especially since he qualified for the bariatric surgery before season 2 ended. It was one of the most anticipated premieres, with fans wanting to know if Tammy lost the required weight, and if she’d already had surgery.
